When Rani tries to save the crown prince and he ends up dead instead, her entire life is thrown into turmoil. Her guild is disbanded, its buildings razed, its lands salted, and the guild members imprisoned. Her family is arrested and killed as traitors. Forced to find her way alone through the streets, she tries to discover the truth of what happened and who is really responsible for the prince's death. To save herself and her king, she transforms herself, changing caste as she needs, until she makes it into the king's household and into the heart of the betrayal that awaits him.
Impression: I really enjoyed this book. Rani is young, but the author still gets even the adult reader caught up in her life and circumstances, and does so without losing that inexperienced child quality that Rani should have. I always find it fascinating when an author can keep me intrigued even when it seems the books is more appropriate to a younger aged reader because of the age of the main character. Klasky even manages to keep that whininess youngsters can get when things aren't working out for them without making it annoying to me as a reader. The culture she's created is rich and diverse, and well defined without the author resorting to long, drawn out explanations (which has annoyed me in other books). The twists and turns in the story kept me interested, and the writing was smooth and vivid. I wouldn’t say the book was deep, but it's a quick, enjoyable read, and sometimes that's all I need. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
